Petition to stop the government reclassifying craft as non-creative....

Responsible department: Department for Culture, Media and Sport

We request the Government reconsider the proposal that craft no longer be considered part of the creative industries, as part of the 30 April proposed changes set out in Classifying and Measuring the Creative Industries consultation paper.

The craft industry and those who work in it, over 88,000 people making a £3bn annual contribution to the UK economy, are inherently and by their very nature creative. We want the UK Government to stop ignoring The Crafts Council and the thousands of mostly sole trading craftsmen and women who consider themselves to be and indeed are creatives.
The Government should be proud & supportive of our vibrant creative craft industry & celebrate the unique, rich diversity of skills & craftsmanship, not seek to declassify, dismiss & undermine it.
Calling an IT Business Analyst a creative but refusing the title to a skilled potter or ceramicist shows the level of understanding that those proposing the change have of what is and isn't creative.

Number of signatures: 19,744

Created by: Sian Astley

Closing: 08/08/2013 12:53

 

SIGN THE PETITION HERE!!

 

A craft is a pastime or a profession that requires some particular kind of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly as pertinent to the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small-scale production of goods. The traditional terms craftsman and craftswoman are nowadays often replaced by artisan and rarely by craftsperson (craftspeople).

The Arts and Crafts Movement

The term crafts is often used to describe the family of artistic practices within the family decorative arts that traditionally are defined by their relationship to functional or utilitarian products (such as sculptural forms in the vessel tradition) or by their use of such natural media as wood, clay, ceramics, glass, textiles, and metal.

Studio crafts

Crafts practiced by independent artists working alone or in small groups are often referred to as studio craft. Studio craft includes studio pottery, metal work, weaving, wood turning, paper and other forms of wood working, glass blowing, and glass art.

Craft fairs

A craft fair is an organized event to display crafts by a number of exhibitors. There are craft shops where such goods are sold and craft communities, such as Craftster, where expertise is shared.

Tradesman

A tradesman is a skilled manual worker in a particular trade or craft. Economically and socially, a tradesman's status is considered between a laborer and a professional, with a high degree of both practical and theoretical knowledge of their trade. In cultures where professional careers are highly prized there can be a shortage of skilled manual workers, leading to lucrative niche markets in the trades.